This invention relates to the prosthodontic restoration of previously placed dental implants whereby a fixture, typically titanium, is surgically implanted in the edentulous area of the alveolar bone as a substitute for a missing natural tooth root.
The use of dental implants has proceeded rapidly since their commercial introduction to the dental community. Initial attention of implant restoration of the mouth was focused on the achieving of a sound integration of the titanium fixtures to the surrounding bone. Success was determined by the degree of this osseointegration. As the field grew in size and scope, a variety of sizes and configurations of implants became available to the dental practitioners. However, in the rush to provide biocompatible fixtures in the mouth, inadequate attention was paid to the needs of the restorative dentist in his role of providing restorations that are esthetic and functional over implants that were more frequently placed at an angle in that they would not be parallel to other implants or natural teeth. As a result, it was left to the restorative dentist to provide a great deal of ingenuity, while enduring time-consuming and expensive procedures in trying to make these implants serviceable and esthetic.